WSET Two Part Two

Each Tuesday flew by faster than the last. Time was winding down until the exam. During our first class we spent a little extra time getting to know one another and sampling a plethora of wines so we were a little behind moving forward. The extra time spent getting to know one another and sampling served as sort of a team building exercise. The class became more comfortable with one another, and Tim’s personality really started to come through. Each conversation and bottle we tasted through became less about the wine’s structure and more about the person standing next to you. It was a good trade off. It was a necessary trade off to set the positive tone for the rest of the class.

As I indicated in the previous article, since we were starting the class off a little late, the pace had to pick up. Let’s just say, we were moving in the latter half of the class. There were a few classes that our heads barely looked up from our books and Tim didn’t get a break (until the tasting portion). In the fifth class we stayed an extra hour to get some more work done but Tim ordered Pizza for the group. I do have to say that even though it was a lot of hard work and even more study, the classes were really fun. After all the study of wine includes all of the best subjects rolled into one, history, viticulture, climate science, geography, marketing and chemistry.

As WSET 2 marched on we finally made it to the last class. This is where all of the study for the last few months had to come to the surface and be applied to the exam. We started the class like any other with greetings and pleasantries and then dove into a multi-unit review. Some of it was helpful, some of it was not. Luckily most of it was familiar. After the review it was time for the exam. It was set up the same as the WSET 1 course through scantrons and a question packet. When the clock struck the top of the hour we started. Minus a few pre-test jitters it went well for both Bri and I. Bri finished before me as usual and I finished a few minutes later. We handed the test in and sat and waited for the rest of the class to finish.

Once the tests were collected and we were free to talk, everyone was questioning each other about the their answers to specific questions or the weird English wording of a few questions, that could have gone either way. A few classmates were good enough to bring in a couple of bottles to share with the class. Among them John-David brought in one of the best California Cabs that I may have ever had. As I understand it the bottle retailed for over $300. We enjoyed the wine and toward the end of the night Tim sabered a bottle of Champagne in celebration.

Bri and I were the last to leave that night. We stayed to have a few extra glasses of wine with Tim and talk about the future of Charm City Wine School and our next steps. It was great catching up a little and knowing that we have Tim nearby who happens to be a wealth of information. We eventually said our goodbyes- that was about a month ago. Both Bri and I are sure we did well on the exam but our results won’t be in for another few weeks. At that point we will stop in to see Tim and grab out Pins/Certificates. After that happens, I will update this article with our scores. See you then!

Update:

Bri: Passed with Distinction

Ian: Passed with Distinction